These are the death throes of a man sick of his time in the public eye. After fighting so hard to return there, Bob Dylan realises he is best as a mystical figure to his favoured listeners. Modern Times was just around the corner, odds and ends forever released to a faithful mass would be his bread and butter. But Concert at Philharmonic Hall, the sixth in a long-running selection of Bootleg Tapes, documents a man at the start of his long crawl to quiet and brooding respect. His heyday decade, years in religious wilderness, two albums with supergroup The Traveling Wilburys, a shaky series of releases in the 1980s before it and a breach of the peace with monumental form on Oh Mercy saw Dylan start to shuffle back into the spotlight.
Blinded by it somewhat, scarred and bruised by his time out of the popular circuit, this bootleg series entry is a damnable and excellent listen. Those times, most certainly, are a-changin’. But take yourself back to Manhattan, 1964. Halloween. Onibaba and The Gorgon were out, and Dylan was tearing up the Philharmonic Hall with some off-kilter acoustics which strike as a man warming to the idea of playing and engaging with his listeners. Sixty years on and not much has changed though the elusive nature is a far greater experience than the big-haired hero playing through these pieces. The quality is exceptional – and it is a credit to Dylan and the sharp, pitch-perfect tone he takes with his lyrical opportunities that these songs can be listened to time and time again. Mr. Tambourine Man, Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright and set stealer It Ain’t Me Babe with Joan Baez included are unstoppable
Chuckling away at lighter moments on Talkin’ John Birch Paranoid Blues is nice enough but the real meat of this piece is the likes of Gates of Eden and It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding). The latter is stripped back enough to have flickers of isolated vocals, a burning acoustic guitar and some spots of harmonica filtering in over a nine-minute rendition of one of the finest songs around. Relics of the past within this one, songs which seem lost to the shifts of time like the amicable, ironic fun of Talkin’ World War III Blues. An apt track which has managed to keep itself somewhat in the shadows but is still an essential bit of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. Either way, the best of moments come from the deathly silence which washes over the audience during the best songs.
Mr. Tambourine Man no doubt steals the show here – a chilling performance. Lighter bits in between but it is stark and surprising to see how many hits Dylan has at such an early point in his career. Exceptional work and another fine entry into the Bootleg Series for it captures the awakening of a sensational singer. He had been performing years before this but Concert at Philharmonic Hall feels like the first of many complete pieces. Fine form indeed and with plenty of enjoyable Baez collaborations within, it is hard to find little to poke holes in. An overall wonderful performance with more than a few highs within – deep cuts toward the end with Mama, You Been on My Mind and All I Really Want to Do encapsulate the hidden gems of Dylan which are just as quality as his other, popularised works. An all-rounder, and the rest is history.
